Residents Push Back Against Creek Road Zone Change
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Bob Suter speaks against the zone change application for 20 Creek Road at Tuesday night’s town board meeting. Long Islander News photo/Connor Beach
By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com
A plan to build an apartment building on Creek Road in Halesite is facing pushback from residents.
The Huntington Town Board held a public hearing Tuesday on a proposed zone change that, if approved, would pave the way for developer Peter Ambrosio to build the four-apartment building at 20 Creek Road.
Thirteen residents spoke against the zone change, several objecting to what they said is over development in Huntington, and more specifically Huntington village.
Cynthia Wozny, of Huntington, said continued construction of apartment buildings is changing Huntington from a suburban to an urban community.
“We came to live in a beautiful suburb, which Huntington has been, and we are very concerned about it being gradually converted to an urban area,” she said.
Huntington-based attorney John Breslin, who is representing Ambrosio, compared the planned two-story, wood frame structure to a “single-family home.”
He added that some opposing the project may be confusing it with Creekside of the Harbor Phase II complex, a 14-apartment complex also planned for Creek Road by a different developer.
The town board has previously approved zone changes for both the property eyed for Creekside Phase II and the already complete Phase I to the east. Ambrosio’s property is sandwiched between the two.
“By continuing the rezoning of this parcel in between the two existing parcels that are already rezoned I believe that would be consistent with the development pattern,” Breslin said.
If the town board approves the zone change the project will continue to the town planning board and then advance to the zoning board. Breslin said the project requires approval of one variance for “width at the setback line” as the 80-foot-wide property does not meet the 100-foot requirement under R-3M zoning.
Other residents questioned the environmental impacts of Ambrosio’s proposal.
Bob Suter, of Halesite, argued the town board should consider the environmental impacts of Ambrosio’s plan in conjunction with the neighboring Creekside of the Harbor developments.
The town board could vote on the zone change application soon as its next meeting, April 10, 2 p.m.
